The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Oklahoma
Tiffany Jackson's 25 points help Texas bury Sooners
02.26.2005 | Women's Basketball
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Texas shook off a big scare to get a big win over rival Oklahoma.
Tiffany Jackson scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and No. 13 Texas overcame a frightening injury to guard Nina Norman to rout Oklahoma 72-36 on Saturday night.
Norman was carried off the court on a stretcher after Oklahoma's Chelsi Welch elbowed her in the head as the two scrambled for the ball midway through the first half.
Norman was taken to a hospital for tests but was released later in the night and returned to the arena after the game.
It was a happy ending to a scary 11 minutes that had paramedics scrambling to her side and the crowd of 8,214 on its feet in stunned silence.
Only in the huddle of Texas players was there a sense of relief that Norman was going to be OK.
"We knew she was going to be OK. She was talking to us, being her feisty self," said Texas' Jamie Carey. "That reassured us and helped us a lot."
Although she appeared motionless for several minutes when she first went down, Norman gave a "Hook 'em, Horns" gesture to the crowd as she was wheeled off the court.
Already stirred up by the emotions of a "Senior Night" send-off for Carey and five other Longhorns, Texas appeared angered and energized by Norman's injury.
"When Nina went down, it was very emotional for us," Jackson said. "We wanted to take all that emotion and put it on the court."
After Oklahoma took a brief 15-14 lead, Carey turned a steal into a layup, Jackson converted a three-point play and Texas took a 30-24 lead into halftime.
Texas stormed into the second with a 14-0 run that turned it into a rout. CoCo Reed got it started with a jumper, Heather Schreiber hit a 3-pointer and Jackson used an athletic move under the basket to put back a miss for a layup, giving Texas a 20-point lead.
"It became a track meet," said Texas coach Jody Conradt. "I don't think too many people can outrun us when we get it in high gear and get going."
Texas (19-7, 12-3 Big 12) got its second huge game from Jackson in the heated rivalry. She had 30 points and 16 rebounds in Texas' 83-71 overtime win earlier this season.
Dionnah Jackson scored 13 to lead Oklahoma (15-11, 7-8), which shot just 21 percent and became the third straight team to score under 50 against the Longhorns. The Sooners scored just 12 points in the second half.
"How do you do that?" said Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale. "How do good players do that?"
The Sooners crumbled under the onslaught, missing their first 11 shots of the half as the Longhorns kept building on the lead as Conradt left her starters in the game. Oklahoma was a dismal 4-of-30 shooting in the second half.
"They just started attacking us," Dionnah Jackson said. "We didn't hold our ground and we didn't come back at them."
The Longhorns have won 27 consecutive home games in the Big 12.
Texas team physician Mark Chassay said after the game Norman was "unresponsive" to paramedics for about 25 seconds after the injury.
Chassay said Norman felt "tenderness" in her spine but that she was cleared to be released after undergoing several tests. She returned to the Frank Erwin Center after the game wearing a neck brace but did not speak with reporters.
"Nina is so important to our team," Conradt said. "For us to play the way we did without her tonight is a testament to how much this team wanted to win."
POSTGAME NOTES
• Texas improves to 19-7 overall and to 12-3 in the Big 12 with the victory; the Longhorns continue in a tie for second in the Big 12 standings, with one regular season game remaining ... The win was UT's sixth straight - the longest win streak of the year - and UT is 10-1 in its last 11 games
• For the third year in a row, the Longhorns finish Big 12 home court action with a perfect 8-0 record ... Texas has won 27 consecutive home games against Big 12 opponents (dating back to Jan. of 2002)
• Texas now leads the all-time series with OU, 18-8 ... Texas is 7-1 against the Sooners in the last seven meetings, including a 83-71 overtime victory in Norman on Jan. 26 and the win tonight
• The loss for OU was the second-worst under Coach Sherrie Coale, and the 12 points scored by the Sooners in the second half were the lowest half-point total of the year for Oklahoma
• Texas closes out its homecourt play by going 13-1 this year (lone loss was to Rutgers on Jan. 2)
• UT sophomore Tiffany Jackson logged her ninth double-double of the year with a game-high 25 points to go with 12 rebounds ... She also had a team-high four blocks ... Jackson was the lone Longhorn in double-figure scoring, netting double-digit points for the 23rd time this year
• Texas senior forward Heather Schreiber, who started her 128th straight game (the most of ANY Division I player in the nation currently) pulled down a game-high and season-high 14 rebounds - one shy of her career best
• For the ninth game in a row, the Longhorns out-rebounded their opponent (tonight by a 51-44 margin)
POSTGAME QUOTES
Texas Head Coach Jody Conradt
When asked about the game in general....
"This was a really good win. It was fitting that we had a big crowd to recognize the contributions that our six seniors have made. I was worried for a bit that we wouldn't be able to set aside those Senior Night emotions. After a while, we settled down and played Texas basketball.
Our defensive pressure has been the biggest improvement we've made since we played Oklahoma in Norman (UT won in overtime). The way we controlled the boards tonight allowed us to push the ball and control the tempo.
Now's a really good time to be playing well. We have good legs and are fresh and can run and jump. As hard as it was to go through the losing spell, there were lots of things weren't going well. But the strength of this team is that they stayed with it. We are now playing the way we knew we were capable of playing.
Everyone off the bench played really well. The biggest difference is how that group comes in and plays defense. We don't lose anything when they play that way. Coco is very intelligent and knows (the opponent players') tendencies. She's been a huge key for us. I don't have to talk about Annissa (Hastings) and the energy she brings. I was hard on her at the beginning of the season, and it took her longer than I though it would and it took her longer than she hoped it would, to get back to where she was during our Final Four season. Annissa has been a huge part of what we are doing right now. She responds and I just cannot express how important she is for our team. When we made the run to the (2003) Final Four, it was Annissa and how she stepped up her play on the defensive end that was key for us - and we are starting to see that happen again."
On the injury to Nina Norman in the first half and how the team responded to it...
"It was very very hard for our team to stand there and see that Nina was hurt. It's hard to see someone you love and part of your family get injured like that. That's why I let the players go to Nina when she was on the floor. I knew that they could see that she was ready to play and giving the EMT's a hard time as they prepared to put her on the stretcher. She was telling them, in her feisty way, that she wanted to go back in and play. But, we took the proper precautionary procedures with a head injury and she went to the hospital for exams. We all knew by halftime that she was going to be OK.
Over time, Jamie's relationship with Nina has been really special. Jamie has mentored Nina along. I take a great deal of pleasure in seeing their relationship. Jamie took a lot of shots tonight, shots she wouldn't normally take, as if she was saying `I'm going to get this one.' She put a dagger or two out there a few times. Nina has grown up so much and is so important to our team. For us to play without her tonight and to play as well as we did is a testament to how much we wanted to winl Nina's been a catalyst for us over this stretch when we've been playing well."
On the second half and out-scoring OU, 42-12..
"They like up-tempo games and getting the ball and going with it. We said, no one can go faster and quicker than us. Let's push the ball and run and get quick baskets. Then it became a track meet out there. And not many can out-run us when we get going. We talked about having a favorable size match-up inside and said, let's try to get around the rim."
On the senior class which closed out its home-court play tonight...
"You know, every class you have is different. This class is special. You don't compare people and teams. This team has a lot of talent and character. I'm so proud of how they have progressed as student-athletes. They all will all graduate this semester or next. They have been model citizens. I've said time and time again that this has been a very low-maintenance group. They are punctual, responsible, and I don't have to worry about what they are doing off-court. And I know that they will be really focused when they come on the court. You love them for a lot of these reasons. And, you know what? They also are really, really, good.
Senior G Jamie Carey
When asked if Nina's injury inspired them...
"When Nina went down, it was hard for our team. We are such a close family and to see someone go down like that and be hurt was tough on us. We talked as a team and discussed how important it was for us to come together and be more connected and get back into the flow of the game. We had to play for Nina. She was talking to us while she was laying there and being her feisty self and that reassured us.
On playing in the Erwin Center for the final time...
"This was a very emotional time. I clearly remember walking onto the floor here for the very first time when I arrived at Texas. And now, to walk on the floor for the last time... It's been an incredible three years. I've played with some of the most wonderful people. The fact that it is all starting to come to an end is tough. We've invested a lot in each other as teammates, and in our coaches and our coaches in us. It is hard for it to come to and end. It was a lot of fun out there tonight, though."
Oklahoma Head Coach Sherrie Coale
On what the loss means to the OU program for post-season berths and the second half of the game (when OU was out-scored by a 42-12 margin)...
"To be quite frank, we have to get the wheels back on the wagon and go play OSU. I don't know if I have the luxury of thinking beyond that at all. A loss to Texas is nothing to be ashamed of, but the way we played in the second half bothers me tremendously. Texas was hitting on all cylinders in the second half. They are a top 10 team. Maybe the way we lost is bad, but the fact that we lost is not bad.
When we were down by six at halftime, I was saying, boy, Texas missed some shots they probably will make later in the game. We should be up, up. We knew they are gong to hit those shots. We talked about attacking the pressure. But, we missed shots early (in the second half) and they made a couple of big plays, and it was like we froze up. We didn't change defenses, or run a set. We seemed frozen. If I knew why I could fix it."
